Rassan'Tep of poisons

With such a relaxing day, everyone was brought closer. The various goblins, evolved, newborns, with hairs or barks, ended up waking up, entangled.

Gran didn't have time to produce armors, and the Gorillas, Algen and the 11 tier 4 Ents were wearing leather armor that the Mandrill produced.

These production class could level up by crafting. The various beasts' corpses were a windfall for them and the Mandrill could make many different type of armors and gears, thus increasing her know how and the products that they were crafting. Gran had lots of materials to use with the golems that were killed.

Still, Moonkong was given a rare curved dagger with a large blade. Harma wore heavy gauntlets made with the corpse of an onyx golem. They were the only ones with new equipment.

While all the others went out hunting the expedition members gathered to discuss strategy. Harma and Eve were insightful, having met the beast and seen its environment..

They explained that the beast was living in a poisonous lake, surrounded by desolate and decayed plants. The vegetation was poisonous and they should be careful in not being injured in the slightest as they would be poisoned.

The hydra was a large beast, 20 or 30 meters big, with 9 elongated, snake like heads, with horns that were attached to fins. It had e vermilion color and a slimy substance coating it's whole body. Its mouths were angular and strong, capable of cutting a tree in half.

They didn't have much more information as the hydra sparcely left its inhabitat besides when feeding. Still, because the toxicity of the environment increased the closer one gets to the pond where it lived, they deduced that either the hydra, or some magical poisonous thing caused it. Very few beasts were living in the Poisonous part of the forest. It was that they had to deal with early on if they wanted to establish themselves in the forest.

With these information, they decided to lure the hydra away from its swamp.

Then, the Ents were tasked with holding and battering it, while the close range fighters deal fatal damages. Ezyze and Eve were supposed to deal with support and magic damages.

It was a simple plan, but they couldn't do more strategizing if they have no information on its combat capabilities.

They still discussed various escape routes and ways to survive if things were to turn badly. Survival was and is the most important thing to them.

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They entered the poisoned forest. Ezyze found a changed atmosphere. When they went deeper in the forest, he felt the toxic air burning his throat and scorching his lungs. He kept checking his status to see if he had any ailment but nothing appeared on it.

Everyone was tensed. They knew that they will be fighting a rank 5 legendary being from the dragon race. On Earth, there were legends of the infamous hydra and Ezyze was extremely wary of such a strong being.

They came across numerous snakes: Boas and anaconda with poison leaking from their scales, gigantic cobras and even scorpion killers. Like a hot knife through butter, they quickly decimated their enemies and advanced to the foot of the Hydra's lair.

Ezyze found himself near a big pond, almost a lake. The purple water seemed to be boiling as bubbles released in the air a toxic gas. When he was at the edge of the pond, a deep voice, filled with hatred could be heard.

"You dare come across my territory, puny beings. You are brave considering that most being avoid this toxic habitat and none approach my lair. Know that today you digged your own grave. You thought that you were showing bravery but it is only foolishness that you offer. Many adventurers came in this forest, even the great people from the holy bird race. They were only preys in the end. I am starving and will devour you all!"

Splash, all of a sudden, 9 heads with 15 meters long necks came out of the water. The draconian heads had from 1 to 9 horns. The slit irises were surrounded by a blood red pupil that were watching Ezyze and the other hungrily.

Swoosh!

In a heartbeat, Algen, the wood humans, Arthur, the gorillas and Ezyze were almost bitten or squizzed to death. At the last minute, they dodged the attack and backstepped. Ezyze blinked away.

The hydra stood up, it's enormous shoulders leaving the water.

While Algen stayed behind, the wood humans launched themselves and attacked the heads, their bodies and weapons coated with their aura.

"Retreat! It is more powerful than we thought!" Shouted Ezyze. They separated in several groups and started to sprint away.

The hydra went out of the toxic water, its powerful legs leaving deep footprints in the ground for every step it took. Its long tail left a trench in its path.

"You will not escape, puny creatures. Feel the wrath of the dragonkin. Feel the despair of facing me. Worry not, I will leave one of you alive so that everyone will know who the true ruler of thus forest is!"

Ezyze was eventually left behind by the Gorillas brothers. He stumbled on a root, crashed on the ground, stood up and kept running. His eyes, throat and lungs were on fire.

BOOM!

The hydra destroyed nearby tress and towered in front of Ezyze. Its frame was so big that only its body filled Ezyze field of vision. Scarlet drops leaked from the hydra's scales and mouths, disintegrating the ground.

"Know your privilege, human, for today, you will be killed by I, Rassan'Tep, illustrious queen of poisons and ruler of the Eternal mountain range."

The head with 3 horns had her massive mouth opened, about to rip Ezyze to shreds.

'I am tired to always find myself in this exact situation', he thought.

BOOM!

Sunkong smashed the 3rd head, his body filled with electric energy. He then punched and hammered, until the head becomes meat paste.

Rassan'Tep roared, in deep pain. The Ents, wood humans, Arthur, Eve and the remaining gorillas came forwards. The slow Ents behind her, the rest of the group was just in front of her.

The 3rd head regenerated at a speed visible with naked eyes. She inspired, created a dome like shape with her heads.

Then.

Brrr! BOOM!

The 9 heads untangled like a whirlwind and vermilion beams escaped her mouths.

The gorillas sent their strongest lightning bolts, Ezyze the biggest spatial spear that he could control, Baal a wave of hellfire that Eve boosted with wind magic, Arthur a sword wave and several aura swords. Algen made plants grow which surrounded them all, looking like a wood bunker.

BOOM!

A massive explosion followed.

The wood bunkers shook. Everyone was worried.

When the shaking stopped, they looked around the bunker.

All around Rassan'tep, there was nothing. A lonely wood bunker and 4 Ents stood amidst a desolate plane. The former toxic yet lively forest became a barren land.

They were all honestly shocked by such power.

One of the 4 Ents which took the brunt on the attack had red miasma leaking of his left shoulder. His bark was damaged and green blood poured out of his left shoulder and eyes.

He accelerated and tackled the hydra with all his might. Rassan'Tep immediately bites him and trashes around.

Waking up from their stupor, they resumed the raid on the hydra.

Eve, Baal and Ezyze sent one magic attack after the other. When the spatial chains were about to piercenher, they seemed to be corroded and the mana maintaining the spells dissipated. The same thing happened for other magic attacks.

The wood humans hacked and slashed the heads. The other Ents tackled her and locked 3 heads.

The 3 gorillas likewise focused on 3 heads.

Arthur shouted " Everyone! It is pointless to smash the heads! Instead, cut the head and neck open and look for weak points!"

He zoomed towards the 4th head and started to slash wildly. The wind humans attacked the heads 3 and 5.

Without enough time to charge her attack, Rassan'Tep could send only weaker beams and poison waves. She trashed around, sent beams, clawed and bit. The wood humans took the brunt of these attacks. It was tough, they were hurt. They held on.

Arthur cut the 4th head starting from the gap between her teeth, through the neck, ending at the base of her shoulders. While she immediately regenerated, he saw what would change the tide of the battle.

"Everyone! The hydra has a brain and a heart at the base of her neck. We must destroy both simultaneously!

Arthur! Ezyze shouted, Destroy her heart!"

He used gladiator charge and to the the frontlines at the same time. He accelerated like a stock car and jumped high in the air, before facing to the ground. He increased largely his body's gravity and delivered the strongest axe blow that he could, focusing on her head.

Splash!

Her 4th head's brain and heart were simultaneously slashed.

The hydra trashed around but couldn't do much under the combined oppression of the group.

Her fourth head and neck started to regenerate slowly.

"Hurry! We must destroy all her brains and hearts!" Shouted Arthur.

Sunkong left the head that he was handling for Arthur and Ezyze to handle it. He went to Moonkong's side and mercilessly crushed Rassan'Tep 's 1st heart, while Moknkong did the same.

While Arthur and Ezyze repeated the manoeuvre, Rassan'Tep released Poisonous fog from her remaining months. Baal and Eve coordinated to burn the fog and dissipate it using wind spells.

Still, all present here inhaled the poison.

With 2, then 3 heads off of service, the battle flow became relatively smooth and they managed to kill all of the 9 brains and necks. The problem was that they didn't receive any experience and that at the bass of the neck, the flesh was slowly being regenerated before Baal burnt jt again.

Coated with Thunder, Harma destroyed the front ribs of Rassan'Tep. They decided to explore the Hydra's body and destroy whatever was keeping her alive. Arthur hacked and slashed, while the others similarly destroyed her inside.

Thud.

Ezyze passed out, limp. The veins of his neck and face were Purplish. And it went unnoticed.

Arthur made a silver gray slash and found her heart, in her chest, pumping. The organ was bigger than Arthur's whole body.

He hacked and pierced, but a vermilion mana shield was protecting it.

The gorillas lost patience. They reduced her insides to meat paste, when they saw three glistening core likes organs, which were the size of a basketball and located in three different places, along her spines. These were legendaries mana hearths.

Mana hearts are a tricky thing. Dragons are creatures that are among the few races that naturally stand at the top of the food chain. While other species have similar strenght, dragons are commonly referred to an apex race. The dragons have monstrous physical bodies and an ability to naturally control mana. Their brain process all of the senses' information and helps in producing amazing results and strong magic spells. The dragon breath is actually a heavy processed spell. The heart is the motor of dragons, allowing to have strong physical bodies, and their strenght and each and every of their moves are filled with mana. The mana heart, however, is an organ that is created once a dragon reaches a certain dimension in magic. The mana heart, or dragon heart, is a new organ that a dragon created when it reaches a threshold in magic. It is the place where mana is stored, then purified, over and over again. While every races can store mana in their hearts, this organ is to store purified mana only, while being exclusive to the dragon race.

They quickly separated the 3 hearts from their places. 2 of them were a vermilion, purplished and oozed a toxicity so high that keeping the mana in his hand caused being poisoned. Theast crystal had a pure white color.

Arthur slashed the still pumping heart and the loud noise stopped.

Congratulations, you have killed the legendary being, Rassan'Tep, the hydra and poison queen. You gained an enormous number of experience.

They were all elated!

"Ezyze! Arthur said, we did it!"

When he turned around, he saw Ezyze, lying on the ground and unconscious. His skin was purple, the tip of his fingers in a state of necrosis and his body was sometimes burning hot and sometimes incredibly cold.

Arthur was desperate. His new master was dying and dying on his own.

"Eve, quickly, fly him to the council! They must heal him! Ezyze, survive!"

Eve grabbed him, coated her whole body with wind magic, and zoomed towards the Emberwood forest sanctuary.

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Ezyze, just after slashing Rassan'tep's 4th brain, felt that he inhaled a tiny, tiny amount of poison. While she blasted and trashed around, he managed not to get hit and Eve and Baal managed to handle the poison before it causes harm. Just after destroying the brain, he felt that he inhaled a substance. It was even less that a puff of a cigarette.

From there, his vision turned upside down. He heard Arthur telling him to repeat the same process and followed his lead. Then again, he felt even worse. He couldn't see or feel properly and hallucinated. Fearing to be hit or attacked, he blinked behind, from what his poisoned self thought would be a safe distance. His heart was burning. He felt his blood pumping in his veins and it hurt as if liquid lava was being pumped instead of blood. His throat was cold and dry, so dry that it was burning. All of his being hurt.

He remembered. His mother on Earth, always helping him, cooking delicious food and giving good advices. She never judged him and was always there for him. He remembered his friends, the videogames, playing football and going out. He remembered all those dear to him.

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